Collar stiffener



H. C. HOLT COLLAR STIFFENER Aug. 14, 1951 Filed Sept. 21, 1948 I INVENTORQ H c HOLT FIG. 3

ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 14, 195T UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COLLAR STIFFENER Hobart '0. Holt, St. Louis, Mo.

Application September 21, 1948, Serial No. 50,279

1 Claim. 1

invention relates to wearing apparel, and more particularly to an accessory in the form of a collar stiffener for maintaining the front edges of a collar in an extended and non-wrinkled condition.

Many devices and schemes have been employed in an effort to maintain soft and semi-soft shirt collars in shape without wrinkles, including buttons, loops, snaps, and other features built into shirts, as well as numerous devices for attachment to the shirt. These have not proven satisfactory for many reasons, including their lack of efiectiveness, their cost and complicated nature, their tendency to fray the collar prematurely, and the like.

It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide a collar stiffener of simple, inexpensive, and durable construction, which will effectively perform the function for which it is intended without injury to the garment to which it is applied.

A further object of the invention is to provide a collar stiffener applicable to substantially all types of collars, which can be readily applied and removed, and which will remain concealed when not in use.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective illustrating the device applied with one of the wings of the collar turned D;

Fig. 2, a fragmentary perspective illustrating the manner of applying the invention to the collar;

Fig. 3, a perspective of the device per se;

Fig. 4, a plan view of a modified version of the device of the present invention; and

Fig. 5, a section on the line 5--5 of Fig. 4.

With continued reference to the drawings, there is shown in Fig. l a collar having wings II and I2, provided with hemmed edges l3 and i l. The collar may be part of the shirt or other garment, or may be a separate element, and constitutes no part of the present invention. A conventional necktie l5 may be used if desired.

The collar I0 is of the type generally used, and is constructed of relatively soft material in order that it may be worn with comfort. Ordinarily, after use for a short period of time the collar loses its shape, becomes wrinkled or otherwise does not retain its original appearance and neatness. This is particularly true of the wings and edges at the front of the collar.

In order to maintain a neat appearance the wearer finds it necessary to exchange the collar, or if it is attached to a shirt the entire garment frequently must be replaced, even though it may not be soiled.

A flexible or resilient stiffener is provided in the form of a relatively thin, narrow, bar It. This bar is preferably of stainless steel, and is provided at each end with a piercing point ll terminating in a shoulder 58. Due to its thinness and narrow width the bar is relatively light, yet it has sufficient resiliency to return to its original elongated shape when bent or distorted.

The bar it is adapted to he applied on the under side of the edges of the collar wings with each piercing point it anchored in the fabric or other material of the collar. The piercing points are inserted as shown in Fig. 2, so that they are slightly clcser together than when the bar is in its normal position, thereby enabling the bar to hold the collar extended. In other words, in applying the device it is bent into the curved position shown in Fig. 2, whereupon the piercing points are inserted into the collar and the bar allowed to return to its normal position, thereby causing the collar wings to become smooth and attractive.

In the actual application of the device the collar is laid in the palm of the hand, or on any substantially flat surface with the under surface upward. The bar it is grasped with the thumb and middle finger contacting one side thereof adjacent the ends, and with the index finger engaging the opposite side at substantially the midpoint the bar is bent in the form of a bow as shown in Fig. 2. The points ll are inserted into the fabric and the device released, whereupon due to the resiliency of the bar it will return to its original straight condition. ihis operation results in stretching the fabric, thus maintaining the collar wings straight and free from wrinkles.

It will be readily apparent that the device of the present invention is of extremely simple and inexpensive construction, can be easily and quickly applied or removed, will not injure the fabric and will last indefinitely.

In order to adapt the device of this invention to shoulders of various styles in which the length of the collar wings may vary considerably, the invention contemplates provision of an adjustable collar stiffener shown in detail in Figs. 4 and 5.

The adjustable stiffener 20 is formed of two slidably related elongated parts, a receiving part 2| being provided with parallel longitudinally extending grooves 22 in which are slidably received parallel arms 23 on the complementary received part 24, and the surfaces (preferably the inner) of grooves 22 are provided with a series of ratchet teeth 25 designed to mesh with ratchet teeth 26 on each of the arms 23. It will thus be seen that when in engagement these ratchet teeth will hold parts 2| and 24 in any desired position of adjustment.

In order to adjust the device it is only necessary to exert a slight outward pressure on the arms 23 to spread the same, thus dis-engaging teeth 25 and 26, making possible free relative sliding movement of the parts in order to change the effective length of the device.

Piercing points 2! similar to those provided on the device illustrated in Fig. 2 and described above are disposed on the outer ends of the parts 2| and 24, and these points together with adjacent shoulders 28 serve to engage the material of the shirt collar and elfect a stretching and smoothing action.

The manner of application of the adjustable collar stififener shown in Fig. 4 is the same as that described above and illustrated in Fig. 2 in connection with the non-adjustable stiffener, the material of the stiffener 20 being suificiently resilient to permit the necessary bending thereof for application to the shirt collar.

It will thus be seen that by the provision of a relatively simple collar stiffener that applicant has provided a device capable of widely diversified use in accordance with the particular style of collar being worn by the user, and which device is relatively durable and foolproof, and which may be economically manufactured.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention Without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is shown in the drawings and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

An adjustable collar stiffener comprising a relatively thin, narrow, elongated, bar having a fabric piercing point and adjoining shoulders at each end, the entry of said points into the fabric being limited by said shoulders, said bar comprising substantially U-shaped receiving and received members, said receiving member having spaced substantially parallel arms with longitudinal slots in the lateral edges thereof and said received member having spaced substantially parallel resilient arms longitudinally moveable in said slots, the arms on said receiving and received members having cooperating ratchet teeth by means of which the parts are retained in longitudinally adjusted position, said ratchet teeth having inclined surfaces engaging to permit relative movement by pulling said members away from each other, and perpendicular surfaces engaging to prevent movement of said members toward each other, said teeth being disengaged by flexing said resilient arms away from said slots.

HOBART C. HOLT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 821,678 Theberath May 29, 1906 1,690,715 Brenessel Nov. 6, 192-8 1,766,596 Burke June 24, 1930 

